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[Heroines Conversation 1]
(Lyncean Sword Marshall Side)
Having made a mess of the meeting, he didn’t take his time to leave the room.
I took a deep breath and looked at the remaining two.
“There’s something I’d like to ask you about. Would you spare me a minute?”
I could see Dan on the other side of the door, but I was afraid I had to keep him waiting because I just had to get the answer out of them.
“I-I wouldn’t, but what might it be?”
“What is it-nya?”
At my request, the two stopped getting up and sat back in their seats.
“I was wondering. What… makes you care so much about that guy?”
They always put Deskustos first.
If it was because he was holding on to their weaknesses, I would do everything I could to help them, even if I had to use the power of the Marshall House.
The two looked at each other at my words.
“W-well, my reason is simple… It is because Lord Luc is my benefactor.”
“A Deskustos is your benefactor?!”
The Deskustoses were notorious for their evil deeds and they were certainly not a bunch one would associate with the word ‘benefactor’.
I wouldn’t have been surprised if she had been cheated or threatened, but he was her benefactor, she said…? I was so surprised that I ended up shouting out loud.
“Y-yes. Lord Luc saved the orphanage I was from.” She said with a reddened face, but I almost couldn’t believe my ears.
A Deskustos saved an orphanage? He had been providing them with food for free? Had he been conducting some poison experiment perhaps? Or had it just been a camouflage for human trafficking? My brain couldn’t keep up with the unbelievable things she had said.
“He didn’t ask for anything in return and told us not to worry about it because he did it voluntarily. He is a very kind person.
“It is not an exaggeration to say he is my savior.
“Despite the amazing things he has done… he doesn’t keep them in mind, as if saving others is the most natural thing for him to do. He also saved my brother’s life.
“I wouldn’t be here without him.
“That is why I will dedicate my everything to him.”
Myril seemed intoxicated as she kept talking on and on about Deskustos. Watching her, the word ‘fanatic’ came to mind.
Her eyes were shining but out of focus.
Her ecstatic expression and her reddish face conveyed that she genuinely admired Deskustos.
Her, to say the least, unexpected feelings overwhelmed me and I was at a loss for how to respond.
Could she have been brainwashed? No, that was unlikely.
Wait, don’t tell Ruby is also…
I hurriedly turned my gaze to Ruby, worry filled my eyes.
“As for me… it’s because he’s strong-nya.”
“Huh?”
Thankfully, my worry turned out unfounded, but her words confused me.
Deskustos was strong. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to beat Dan. And strength was proof of one’s worth to adventurers—or at least that was the impression I was under.
However, there were many people who were stronger than Luc in the academy.
Ruby was quite strong herself.
I never fought her, but I had a feeling my chance to win would be slim even if I did.
Yet she asserted that Deskustos was strong. How strong could he possibly be?
I looked at her doubtfully.
“You don’t believe me-nya? Well, not that it matters-nya.
“But he’s the strongest in the academy-nya. That’s unquestionable-nya. I like strong people-nya. So does my family-nya. Plus, the Deskustoses don’t discriminate-nya. That’s why I want to be by his side-nya.”
I couldn’t comprehend the two’s explanations at all.
“Benefactor? Strong? Don’t discriminate?”
Those words were far removed from the image of Luc Hugaro Deskustos in my mind, and they only served to confuse me further.
The Ducal House of Deskustos had a history dating back to the founding of the kingdom. Their members had since been serving as the kingdom’s prime minister for generations.
The founder of Deskustos House had been a close friend of the founding king and he had taken the king’s sister as his wife, thus tying the bond between the two’s families.
As generations passed and members of the Deskustos House married members of other noble families, their blood ties to the royal family weakened, but nonetheless, they remained the most powerful noble in the kingdom, only below the royal family.
However, the current generation of Deskustoses had nothing but bad rumors surrounding them.
Some said they hired beastkins to sell them as slaves.
Some said they centralized power in the royal capital and gathered nobles to cook up some conspiracy.
Some said they were pocketing the kingdom’s money and operating unsavory businesses secretly.
There was no end to the bad rumors about them. I even heard that the Deskustoses had a hand behind every incident that had happened in the kingdom.
My brother got closer to Testa, his classmate, in the hope to shed light on these rumors, and my father never stopped his investigation to uncover the evil deeds of Duke Deskustos during his breaks from military service.
I myself… had been investigating Luc Hugaro Deskustos, the second son of Duke Deskustos.
From the information I had gathered, I could only conclude that he was… a weirdo.
He cared for his skin even though he was a man.
He cooked his own meals despite being a noble.
He always played around with his fiancée.
That was Luc Hugaro Deskustos whom I had known and thought to be all this time.
He never did charity work as Myril had said.
He didn’t seem as strong as Ruby had claimed him to be.
Luc Hugaro Deskustos… just what kind of person was he truly…?
His looks were as beautiful as the rumors said and he gave off a delicate impression.
Be it at the entrance ceremony, during class, or in a team like this, he always had women attending to him.
He was a womanizer who always hung out with women who weren’t his fiancée.
He was a noble, yet didn’t act like one.
He refused a duel when challenged.
He didn’t have pride as a noble… the worst kind of noble.
In spite of that… he had defeated Dan when he seemed to have never trained.
His looks and demeanor were just as rumored to be… but his strength was a mystery.
Taking all that into consideration, my conclusion was…
“I can’t understand him… but that doesn’t change the fact that he is… his family is evil.
“As long as I can’t understand him, I won’t know whether he’s the same as his family and he will remain an enigma.
“I… must continue observing him.”
After thanking the two for giving me their time and watching them leave, I went out into the hallway and met Dan.
“I’m sorry for keeping you waiting.”
“Don’t be, it’s okay. How did your meeting go, by the way? I mean, that guy left earlier.”
Dan had seen Deskustos leave.
“Not to worry. We were done by the time he left, after which the girls and I simply continued with small talk unrelated to the extracurricular lesson. They seemed to… respect him a lot.”
“…Really.”
“Hm? Are you not surprised? I personally can’t comprehend them.”
Normally, Dan would have expressed doubt as I did, but this time he merely stayed silent and looked troubled.
“I may be able to get a better understanding of him when we explore the dungeon. People reveal their true nature when faced with danger. He will definitely show his true colors if he confronts monsters. You bet I will have my eyes on him then.”
Ever since entering the academy, I’d been thinking about nothing but Deskustos.
I tried but still couldn’t seem to understand him… therefore, I’d see for myself what kind of person he truly was in the dungeon!
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Zky Translates 
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My guy is living rent-free in her head LMAO
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